BMJ open
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To assess the relationship between smoking status and health-related quality of life 1 year after participation in a smoking cessation programme in Taiwan. ⋯ Our study provides evidence to support claims that all quitters, regardless of whether they stop smoking for 6 months or 1 year, have better quality of life with regard to anxiety or depression.
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To conduct a fully independent, external validation of a research study based on one electronic health record database using a different database sampling from the same population. ⋯ We found a complex pattern of similarities and differences between databases. Overall treatment effect estimates were not statistically different, adding to a growing body of evidence that different UK PCDs produce comparable effect estimates. However, individually the two studies lead to different conclusions regarding the safety of β-blockers and some subgroup effects differed significantly. Single studies using even internally well-validated databases do not guarantee generalisable results, especially for subgroups, and confirmatory studies using at least one other independent data source are strongly recommended.
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To examine quality of life and coping strategies among immigrant women living with chronic pain. ⋯ Chronic pain had a severe negative impact on quality of life and necessitated alterations in everyday life and active health-seeking strategies. Implications for practice imply a need for a more holistic approach to immigrant women with chronic pain, including a family-centred approach. Further research is needed to explore similarities or differences in and between populations with diverse ethnic, socioeconomic and psychosocial backgrounds, and to assess how ethnicity and culture might influence the experiences of chronic pain.
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We sought to characterise the prehospital experience of Tanzanian trauma patients, and identify barriers and facilitators to implement community-based emergency medical systems (EMS). ⋯ The composite themes generated by the data suggest that there are myriad structural, financial, institutional and cultural barriers to the implementation of a formal prehospital system. However, our analysis also revealed potential facilitators to a first-responder system that takes advantage of close-knit local communities and the trust of recognised leaders in society. The results suggest favourable acceptability for community-based response by trained lay people. There is significant opportunity for care improvements with short trainings and low-cost supply planning. Further research looking at the effects of delay on outcomes in this population is needed.
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Neuroimaging in chronic breathlessness is challenging. The study objective was to test the feasibility of magnetoencephalography (MEG) for functional neuroimaging of people with chronic breathlessness. ⋯ MEG is a feasible method to investigate exercise-induced breathlessness in people breathless with chronic lung disease, and able to identify neural activity related to changes in breathlessness.